Thill-coupling



UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ANDREW G. BRANDT, or SORANTON, PENNSYLVANIA.

THlLL-COUPLING.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters PatentNo. 317,084, dated Mays, 1885.

Application filed March 170, 1885. (X0 model.)

To all whom it may concern..- 7

Be it known that I, A. G. BRANDT, of Scranton, in the county of Lackawanna and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Thill-Gouplings; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, and to the figures and letters of reference marked thereon.

My invention relates to improvements in devices for preventing the disagreeable rattle of the thill-couplings on avehicle; and it consists of a certain improved construction,which I will now proceed to describe.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a view showing the application of my invention to the thill-coupling of a vehicle. 2 and 3 are detached views of the same.

Similar letters of reference in the several figures denote the same parts.

Arepresents the axle of the vehicleto which my invention is applied, and B the bed of the same.

0 represents the clip used for connecting Figs.

the thills to the axle, the same consisting of the portion 0 for extending over the axle, and provided with the two lugs D D, between which the end of one of the thills issecu red by means of the bolt E,passing through them and through the perforated end of the plate F, secured to the thill. The screw-threaded bolts (3 O of the portion 0 project through the plate G, and are provided with the nuts gg for clamping the whole device securely to the axle.

The foregoing is simply a description of the ordinary device employed for connecting the thills of a vehicle to the axle, and forms no part of my invention.

My improved anti-rattler consists of a springsteel plate, H, bent into the form shown-that is to say, formed with the loop I, and bent portion 1 just below the said loop, substantially conforming to the shape of the thill-v plate, the straight portion 1 and the two depending legs J and K, the former being slightly shorter than the latter, and having at its lower end the short curved portion The two legs J and K are placed at a slight angle to the rest of the spring, as shown.

(Jo-operating with the spring H is a metal plate, L, having near one of its ends a series of perforations or slot-s, Z Z Z in one of which the short leg of the portionH is adapted to be inserted. The tendency of the legs of the spring H is to press toward each other, and

therefore when the end of the leg J is inserted and is prevented from dropping through by the loop'I. The plate L is moved into the position shown in full lines in Fig. 1, separating the two legs of the spring portion and forcing the thill against the transverse bolt of the coupling, thus effectually preventing any rattling. The end of the leg J being curved ati prevents the plate L from slipping off, and also serves as a fulcrum of the latter, so that the longer log K, pressing upon its end, will keep it at all times up against the nuts g g and prevent them from working off, thus forming a nut-lock. The several slots in the plate are forthe purpose of making the spring of the same tension at all times. Thus when it has lost some of its resiliency from any cause the end t can be moved from the slot Zto slot Z or 2*, causing the legs to separate more, and this adjustable feature also admits of the use of my invention on vehicles having clips and thills of different 1. The combination of the spring,lo'oped and 7 having the depending legs, as described, with the plate having the perforation near its end, through which one of the legs of said spring portion projects, so that when said plate is moved in one direction the two legs of the spring will be separated, and when moved in the opposite direction it will fold substantially in line with the legs, as set forth.

2. The combination, with the spring having the loop and the two depending legs, one .of which is shorter than the other, of the plate having the slot near one of its ends, through which the shorter leg of the spring projects, as set forth.

3. The combination, with the spring having the loop and two depending legs, one of which is shorter than the other and has its end slightly bent, as shown, of the plate adapted to cooperate with said spring portion having a ANDREW G. BRANDT.

Witnesses:

E. J. LYNETT, ROBT. ROBINSON. 

